Stream sniping is one of the biggest problems plaguing Fortnite from an entertainment perspective. The top streamers can't get the same experience the rest of us do, but Epic is taking steps to help stop the practice.
We've all heard streamers complaining about stream snipers. It's a bit of a meme at this point, but that doesn't mean that top streamers don't have to deal with this problem on a daily basis.
It can be incredibly hard to prove that someone is stream sniping if they don't kill a streamer multiple times in one session. It's difficult for Epic to take action and ban stream snipers with such little proof.
Streamer mode only does so much to stop aggressive gameplay against streamers. In reality, it only protects a streamer from players who don't already know they're in the same game as a streamer.
Without streamer mode, a player might see Ninja, Tfue, or SypherPK in the kill feed and push them because they want to tell their friends about it. Streamer mode does nothing to help streamers avoid true stream snipers, however.
According to a new leak courtesy of @Lucas7Yoshi_ on Twitter, though, Epic is implementing a new system to help make it even harder for stream snipers. This is called "Anonymous Mode."
New streamer mode option thing:
— Lucas7yoshi_ // Fortnite Leaks & News (@lucas7yoshi_) April 16, 2019
"Anonymous Mode"
"Alters your cosmetic loadout that will appear for opponents during a match. You will still appear as your selected cosmetics to yourself and teammates."
Finding a streamer based on the skin they're wearing plays a massive role in stream sniping. Back in the default days, Tfue even considered buying a skin to help prevent stream snipers from knowing it was him.
With Anonymous Mode, a stream sniper won't be able to tell who the streamer is. They'll need to pay even closer attention to their second monitor, which will make life a whole lot harder for them.
It remains to be seen whether Anonymous Mode will grant you a random cosmetic loadout or a predetermined one. If everyone in anonymous mode is the same, it might defeat the purpose a bit.
There's no way to stop stream snipers in any game, but Epic is clearly doing their best if this leak comes to fruition.
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